As an adult I have to judge if slapping a bandaid on it and pretending it doesn't exist is good enough medical care for most of my problems or if I have to actually give in and spend way too much on medicine that never seems to work. Shame I'm allergic to bandaids. Anyway this chapter is a little later than I was anticipating. One of my kitty-kids came crying to me this morning with his eye totally swollen shut, so in the midst of worrying about him all day at work, I had little time to process my thoughts for the story and where it's going.
Good note is he's able to open his eye now and seems to be getting a little better, and I have a good idea of where I plan to take this story. I appreciate all my dear readers and want to thank you so very much! I hope you'll stick with me and enjoy this ride just as much as me! xxxxx
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It wasn't easy to find clothing that would fit someone that was neither short, nor tall. Especially considering the wardrobe that Pearl was rifling through was Marina's and her own. A shirt of Marina's with long sleeves and a loose waist, and a pair of her own lounge pants should do the trick. A glimmer of triumph shone on her face as she returned to the bathroom, just in time to see Marina soaking a washcloth with peroxide.
"Hey, isn't that the stuff that gets all fuzzy?" She set the clothing down on the counter, eyeing up the bottle. Marina shot her a look, trying to silence her before reaching up to touch Agent 8's cheek with the cloth.
It stung, almost like being burned. Agent 8 reeled back slightly, not overly fond of the sensation. However, her escape was halted by the edge of the bathtub. With nowhere to left to scoot away to, she turned her head just in time to have the cloth dabbed again onto her face. The second time hurt more and she let out a small angry sound.
"Hold still and it'll be over faster. She's not gonna let you get away anytime soon." Pearl offered her sage advice, knowing just how persistent the octoling was.
"Thankfully most of these cuts are small. And the bruises don't need any." Marina mumbled mostly to herself as she made quick work of all the smaller injuries. Clean, dry, bandage and move on. It was almost a methodical pattern. For Agent 8, it was more of a small jolt of pain, a moment of cool air, and warm hands wrapping around her. Eventually the loop ended however, as Marina grabbed hold of the octoling's bad arm. "Now just stay calm okay? This one is going to be the worst."
'How bad could it really be? Everything else wasn't so bad.' Agent 8's thoughts rang through her mind as she watched Marina move her arm over the tub. "Pearl can you do me a favor? Take the bottle and pour it over her arm when I say to?" As the bottle changed hands, more pressure was added to Agent 8's arm. "Okay. Go ahead. Enough to cover the whole thing." Marina's words were immediately followed by a cold numbness that washed over Agent 8.
The numbness wore off almost instantly and was replaced by an agonizing pain. It felt as if someone had begun to dig about in her open wound with several sharp objects. The octoling could only produce a pained yelp as she tried to writhe away, put any distance between her and the pain that she could. For what felt like an eternity it burned and she wanted nothing more than to just tear her own arm off and leave it behind.
Eventually what had been agonizing slowed into a strange bubbling sensation. Agent 8 couldn't help but think it to be her very skin melting off. She could only whimper as it fizzled away for a short time before being replaced by the familiar warm washcloth. "Sorry. I know that wasn't fun at all. But it'll help." Marina apologized, dabbing off the remaining liquid.
"Don't worry kiddo. I don't like that stuff either." Pearl gathered up the remaining supplies, putting them away while Marina finished wrapping. She gathered the clothes she had picked out and handed them to Agent 8. "Here. These should work until we get something for you."
A pale blue hoodie and a pair of soft grey pants. They felt warm and heavy in Agent 8's hands. She wasted no time kicking off her boots and changing into the pants, more than happy to leave the uncomfortable skirt she had woken up in behind. However something caught in her pantleg that stopped her for a moment.
The hospital tags. She had almost forgotten about them. Every time she moved, they were just…there. Brushing against her almost as if to tell her that she was in fact there. That everything had in fact happened.
She wanted them gone.
Agent 8 held her wrist out, staring angrily at the yellow band. "I want this gone." Her tone was absolute, unwilling to take no for an answer. Marina and Pearl exchanged glances, understanding completely.
"I think we can do that. Finish getting dressed while I go get some scissors okay?" Marina offered a smile as she left, leaving the octoling to get ready. Agent 8 sighed as she watched her disappear through the door before pulling the sweatshirt up over her head. The pants had fit her just fine, if not a tad on the short side. The hoodie however was much too large for her, the sleeves dangling over her hands by several inches. Agent 8 tried to push the sleeves up a few times, giving up after they kept sliding right back down.
Pearl couldn't help but laugh at how childish Agent 8 looked. It was almost as if she hadn't fought for her very life and almost lost more times than she could count. "It should be okay for now, even if it's a tad big on you. Follow me okay?" Pearl pulled the octoling to her feet, giving her a moment to gather her balance before tugging her along.
Agent 8 was pulled out of the bathroom and down the hallway further, into one of the room she hadn't gotten to see earlier. The door was pushed open slightly and she could see a dull grey color coming from the walls. "We never really use this room, so for now it's going to be yours!" Pearl was overly excited as she shoved the door the rest of the way open. The room was rather open, a single bed in the corner of the room was piled high with colorful blankets and several pillows. A small dresser and lamp were just to the side of it, and much to Agent 8's delight, a window was right above the side of the bed with the curtains drawn.
Agent 8 looked around the room in wonder before bringing her eyes to land back on Pearl, asking her silently. "Go ahead! Make yourself at home!" She gave the octoling a gentle shove into the room before turning to head back down the hall. "Get cozy!"
The room suddenly felt almost too large, too much for one girl. Agent 8 scooted into the room slowly, making her way over to the bed before sitting down on the edge cautiously. It was soft and squishy, much better than anything she could have ever had in the metro. Curiosity got the better of her and it wasn't more than a few moments before Agent 8 had crawled over to the window, peeking outside. They were several stories up, and the world below looked so small, with little inkling shapes moving about on the streets.
"It's amazing isn't it?" Marina's voice pulled Agent 8 back to reality, her eyes drifting away from the window. "We can go out once you're up for it. Until then you should rest." She made her way to the bedside, holding out a hand to the other. "Here. Let me see your wrist." Skepticism crossed Agent 8's mind for a mere moment, remembering the lasts time she had willingly handed over her arm. "I can't take the tags off you unless you let me see them." Marina explained lightly, holding the pair of scissors up in her other hand.
Agent 8 silently lifted her arm, pulling the sleeve back enough to expose the bright yellow band that was wrapped around her. It may have only taken a second to remove the band, but Agent 8 could feel the weight of all the time she had spend in the metro lift off her chest. Watching it fall from her arm was almost sad in a way. As if she was saying goodbye to everyone she had met there, even though she knew this wasn't the case. But something still pushed her. "Can I keep it?" She asked timidly.
"Keep it?" Marina was honestly curious. Not a few minutes ago she was practically begging to have it taken away, but now she wanted to hold onto it? "I guess so…" Marina knelt down and snipped the one from Agent 8's ankle as well before handing them both to her. There was no telling just what was going on in her mind, and Marina knew better than to pry. After all she had gone through similar a long time ago as well.
"Agent 8. I want to ask you something and it might be a little hard for you to answer. Would you be okay trying to answer for me?" Marina moved over to sit down on the edge of the bed, patting the spot next to her, beckoning the younger. Agent 8 followed her motion, sitting down while tilting her head slightly.
"Okay? But why is it hard to answer?" She wasn't sure what Marina meant by that. Was she going to ask her something she didn't know perhaps?
"It's about your past. About Octavio…"